Students as Stakeholders in Teacher Evaluation: Teacher Perceptions of a Formative Feedback Model.

Mertler, Craig A.

The "Student Evaluation of Teaching and Teaching Techniques" (SE3T) instrument, designed for this study of student evaluation of teacher performance, was administered twice to students in seven high schools in north Florida. Each time, results were tabulated and feedback provided to each teacher within one week; each teacher received only his or her own ratings and comments. A survey on the perceived strengths and weaknesses of the process was distributed to participating teachers. Analyses of the data revealed that overall reaction of the teachers to this process of collecting student feedback was highly positive and that it was feasible for teachers to conduct this process on their own. Teachers expressed concern, however, that the process would only be useful if students were honest in their ratings and comments, and that enough time were to elapse between administrations of the SE3T for teachers to process and act upon the feedback. Nearly all of the teachers discussed behaviors, identified as weaknesses by their students, that they had already addressed or were planning to address in the future. Results of the study suggested that the process of collecting student feedback on teachers' classroom performances is useful to teachers who voluntarily participate in the process, and that the SE3T rating form is a useful and valid instrument for collecting the data. Two data tables and a diagram of the SE3T model are appended. (Contains 39 references.) (ND)